If the original LittleBigPlanet — Media Molecule’s cutesy 3D-on-a-2D-plane platformer — elicited one widespread complaint, it’s that the game’s physics engine was woefully unpredictable. Jumping was floaty and frustrating, and moving between the three layers of depth (that is, from foreground to background, or vice versa) could prove nearly as annoying. Most reviewers agreed it was easy to overlook these issues, thanks to the game’s originality and charm — not to mention the impressive level-design tools — but the core gameplay of this offbeat platformer was, most agreed, somewhat flawed. It came down to physics… and the physics engine was simply messy.

So, I was looking forward to LittleBigPlanet 2 as much for its cleaned-up physics as for its new levels and creation tools. Surely, I thought, the developers would have spent the last two years polishing the first game’s rough spots.

Only, they didn’t.

Now, the extent to which this bothers you will depend on what you’re coming to LittleBigPlanet 2 for. If you’re looking for an expansion of the already-excellent level-creation tools found in the first game, the game’s annoyances probably won’t bug you much. In fact, you’ll no doubt be very happy with what this edition offers in the creation department: This time around, the tools are even more robust, giving you the capability to craft complex logic systems, build custom vehicles, and even write your own music. And you’ll no doubt be very happy with the improved tools for browsing and sharing user-created content; it’s now much easier to filter, rate, and provide feedback on community-made levels.

But that’s only part of the package. I would wager that most players come to LittleBigPlanet 2 to, y’know, actually play a game — whether that be via developer- or user-created levels. And here’s where things get a bit less impressive. Many of the on-disc levels feel more like tech demos for what the creation tools can do, and less like levels designed for the player’s entertainment… and while the result is a nicely varied experience, it’s less satisfying than it could be.

Oh, LittleBigPlanet 2 has some serious high points, to be sure. The puzzle-focused levels that center on herding near-mindless Sackbots are particularly entertaining, as are the levels that rely heavily on new gadgets like the grappling hook and water cannon (the later is actually just one possible manifestation of the “Creatinator,” a helmet-mounted gun that can shoot pretty much any material). And most of the competitive and challenge-focused side-levels are much improved from the first game; they’re perhaps a bit less imaginative and off-the-wall, but substantially more playable. It’s also worth noting that the tech-demo approach leads to a pretty varied experience, with lots of puzzle elements, vehicle segments, and even a large array of shooter levels, both top-down and side-scrolling (in fact, LittleBigPlanet 2′s story mode is as much shooter as it is platformer, for better or worse).

But even these high points are tempered slightly by that damned unreliable physics engine. For example, as entertaining as the grapple can be, it’s just as often infuriating due to its unpredictability. And as much fun as it might be to use the “Grabinators” — heavy-duty gauntlets that allow you to pick up large objects — the sections that require you to throw said objects at a specific target can be obnoxious and unpredictable.

These can (and no doubt will) be compensated for in user-created levels, but I don’t see how any level creator could escape the unreliability of the most basic jumping and plane-shifting movements. In a platformer, unreliability leads to frustration. Frustration leads to anger. Anger leads to broken controllers.

The good news is that LittleBigPlanet 2 is every bit as whimsical as its predecessor, so it’s hard to stay mad at it for long. The story mode presents an equally imaginative setting as the original, augmented by a cute story and an entertaining cast of odd characters that are fully voiced in the game’s many (some might say too many) cut-scenes. Sure, the tone is a bit darker than the previous game, and it’s sadly missing the original’s wonderfully offbeat music. But it’s a reasonably satisfying game, even if you never touch a single user-created level — or create any of your own.

Now, if the story mode were the only thing available, you’d find a noticeably lower score up at the top there. As it is, though, so much is here for both players and creators, that it’s impossible not to praise the whole package. Understand that the game is much more than its story mode, and you’ll find plenty to appreciate.